New content will be posted in 2017 and we advise subscribing to this blog, or follow by email, so you do not miss a post.

Friday, November 4, 2016

Theresa and Morgan Say: There’s a plethora of advice on how to publish and sell books. Before you bother with any of it consider if being an author is a cool hobby for you or a career path. Either choice is fine but whether you have one book or a hundred – you need a website. Even social media stars have a website.

Here’s a truth – there are readers who will find you IF you give them something to find and a way to buy your books. The best way to do both is with a website that is your business office and bookstore. It’s all about you and your books!

Basic Web Content for PRE-Published Authors:

Home Page - This is your landing page and home base for your website. It always contains the most up-to-date information. This is where You and Your Work shines at first glance and engages the reader. ALL your digital posting and physical handouts contain this Website Address. Think of this Home Page as the Reception Area of your office-store and the first impression a customer or client has when they walk in the door. How they are greeted will flavor whether they want to step farther into your realm. If you write horror stories your readers want daggers and darkness when they arrive. Don't expect them to be happy with plush ivory couches for a cozy reading experience. Avoid anything that takes time to load like music, video, or extensive graphics.

Author Bio / About Me Page: Here is where you provide some background information about your author PERSONA. Content can include: why you write a specific genre, what inspires you, quirky facts, jobs, hobbies, astrological sign, etc. Whatever you put on this page should provide some peek at your voice / writing style. Access to this page is only through the reception area where the reader, or agent or editor, has entered and you've shaken hands, you now welcome them into your Personal Office. This is your professional BIO expanded into an engaging persona that can interact with both readers and financial backers.

Contact Page: Either as a separate web page / tab on your navigation bar or prominently displayed as a sidebar on your home page, this is to encourage people to contact you. Here is where you put your links to Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram, etc. in addition to your direct email address. This is a good page for a POP UP request for them to subscribe to your newsletter or New Release Notice.

** Even if you have a full sidebar of every social media graphic, Direct Contact Email is EXTREMELY IMPORTANT. Professionals at every level are busy and prefer to dash off a quick email if interested in you.

Optional Page: Research Projects / My Crafts / Why it is worth your time to Check Me Out:This is sort of like a HOLDING SPOT for your future Books Page in your office-store. It is NOT recommended to advertise your books until you have something to sell or a release date. This page can be a blog where you present something engaging on a consistent basis that welcomes audience participation. An avid reader will love interacting with you so here's where your Author Persona needs professional polish. Be gracious when you respond to a reader who gushes about how your book helped them survive the hours of agony while their spouse passed a kidney stone. Give your future readers a peek at your writing, But NOT your plot. Do NOT post mock covers of your books....readers always seem to miss the fact that the book isn't published. They will head to the store only to be frustrated when they can't buy your books.

Basic Web Content for Published Authors:

Same as ABOVE: Home Page Author Bio / About Me

Contact Page for Published Authors compares to a business Conference Room and should be updated and reviewed at least once a month. Think of this page as your Most Professional Author Persona. Your Business card and Media Kit is displayed on the table in this room. Publicists, reviewers, editors, and estranged family members, can have an easy to download packet of the most fabulous you. ALSO make sure you have a DIRECT EMAIL or Contact form that works (send yourself tests through random computers once a month).

Books Page: IS Your Personal Bookstore where you have BUY links for all the outlets where your books can be purchased. Make sure the links go directly to the purchase page - you want to be able to accommodate a quick impulse buy.

This is a Store! It is a Retail Business and here your amazing book covers and blurbs are front and center. In this Bookstore you personally place your fabulous book into readers trembling hands, and you will accept a variety of payment options. It's best to plan this page so the readers can peak inside and read the beginning of your story. At the end of the excerpt, Thank them for reading and include another BUY link for them to purchase the whole book.

Don't make your readers work to find LINKS TO BUY for every Point-Of-Purchase - like the little signs on the doors and by the checkout of your favorite store, or restaurant, listing all the credit cards accepted.

News & Events: List where you are going to be for book signings, blog tours, contests, conferences, workshops, etc. Include a Calendar of where and when you will be at public events, with ALL the information for someone to find you. This includes if you are participating at a local farmers market or craft fair or any other activity that is open to the public. Always have promotional flyers about your books, even if you are not actively signing or selling.

Beyond these basics, published authors have also included:

Media Kit: Contains high-resolution images of your book covers and author photos for media use, in a variety of printable downloads and digital files. Also add the links to published articles by or about you, and interviews.

Multi-Media Page: Here is where you can post anything that requires time to spool or download like book trailers, video journals, interviews, games, etc.

Book Club Info: Reading guides for book clubs complete with questions and themed party suggestions. If you are not a Book Club type author consider a Game room or Playhouse that is interactive and where you can actively engage with your audience.

Bibliography / Library: Some authors include this page as an Easy To Print list of their books and series chronologically.

For Fans: These pages can be a catch-all for everything from character profiles to world building glossaries. JD Robb includes a story arch synopsis for the 30+ books in her In Death Series. This page also includes active BUY LINKS!

Blog Link: If you maintain a blog, promote it on your website. Pre-published authors should also link to their blogs, if they have one.

Your website is the office-store of your dream career as a Professional Author. You can have a family portrait behind your desk and a few framed diplomas on your walls. Your novels may be paranormal-historical-alien-thrillers but you write your books on equipment available in the 21st century on Mother Earth so make sure your office-store is easy to navigate.

REMEMBER: This is your virtual office-store that reflects your Professional Author Persona and Books - not the coffee shop or closet where you really work.

Friday, October 7, 2016

In past posts we've discussed author websites, how to cultivate your author PERSONA via your website, and what your site needs to contain. In this post, we'll take a moment to do a deep dive into the contents of your author media kit.

Now...some folks would argue that this information isn't needed until after you've published your book...and isn't this something your publisher should be handling? *snort*

I would argue that developing an author media kit page for your website is a great thing to have, even if you are still pre-published. (In fact, it is something I need to add to my own website.) Having a media kit will be one more indicator that you:

So...What the heck do I need to include in my media kit?

at least one high resolution author portrait (preferably a professionally produced portrait, not a blurry selfie taken with your smartphone)

a brief bio (content that would be used at the end of a guest blog post or article)

a full bio (content that might be used if you were to ever be a keynote speaker)

high resolution images of your book covers (if published)

Some media kits also include:

press releases

book trailers

links to articles, interviews, and guest blog posts

upcoming events

brag sheet (awards won and other honors)

an 'about me' type interview sheet (your very own question and answer page)

If you do a little research, you'll find that many big name authors do not have media kits. Instead they have contact information for their publicist, agent, or other public relations resources. We would all hope to be on this level one day...but in the mean time, here are links to media kits on the websites of two of my favorite successful authors:

Where should you put this information on my website? You can make a new tab named 'Media Kit' or include this information on a combination 'Events & Media' page. Or you can include your media kit as part of your 'About Me' or 'Contact' page.

Consider adding a media kit to your website.

You will make a lasting impression and be perceived as an organized professional.

Friday, September 2, 2016

The goal of marketing is to generate sales. Marketing is a process, not an app.

Regardless of all the digital tools and apps that have been developed in the six years since we presented our first workshop, the core pages on this site ARE still exactly what you need to know as the backbone of your marketing strategy. You need to develop a Persona/presence to Push your message and Pull your audience to a Point-Of-Purchase. These are critical elements to marketing before the apps and tweets.

In 2012 we made this site interactive by posting three days a week with the following topics: Myth Busting Monday, Workshop Wednesday, Finer Points Friday. It was a lot of fun and let us focus on the extra stuff we stripped out of our core pages to keep our message clean.

In 2013 we posted less for two reasons:

The analytics showed a post got more views and shares when it was the main post for a week or more. That means the quality you present in social media is more valuable that quantity.

A small press wanted us to publish our Guide & Journal so we had to create it.

Through 2015 we consolidated those workshops from 2012 and brought them forward in a stronger message and to make them easy to locate. We also shared personal stories from authors regarding their publishing and marketing journeys.

This year has been all “Finer Points” of promotion and professionalism as that is the stage we are at today – and we’re having fun! Scroll down the right sidebar of this site to see all the topics we’ve already covered for you and the journey creating your career.

Unfortunately, all the myths we covered through these years regarding marketing advice for authors are also still relevant and being promoted to authors. Any promotions/products/promises that have a secret to success flavor with everything in one magic button, is usually a myth. It was the myths that made us mad enough to debunk them and create clear and effective marketing tools for you to generate sales of your books. No magic here, just proven tools and processes.

To quote Neal Thompson, director of Author and Publishing Relations at Amazon.com (from RWR, vol.36, num.8, August 2016) “Finding your readers has always been a challenge, long before this empowering new age of indie publishing. That means indie authors (and, honestly, all authors) need to get the most out of every reader-engagement tool that’s available to them.”

Yep! We totally agree! Then Mr. Thompson states that the CRITICAL ELEMENT TO FINDING READERS (our emphasis) is for authors to concentrate on Writing The Best Book Possible! To which we also agree! The Best Book. The best marketing will not generate sales for a lousy book.

September is Back-to-School month in the USA so take this month to click on the Persona, Push, Pull, POP page tabs below our banner (above) and review each of The 7 Primary Points To Stand Out From The Crowd so you can effectively use all those digital tools and apps to generate sales of your Amazing Book.

Remember, the author journey includes continuing to improve your craft. So here's some links to also review:

Morgan says: Like we've said before
and we'll say it again, the best form of marketing is writing a GREAT book! And
many of the best authors are perpetual learners. With these thoughts in mind, I
followed Gina Fluharty's lead and enrolled in Mary Buckham'sPower
Plotting Workshop. This two-day class was a working session based on
the book she co-wrote with Dianna Love titled:Break Into Fiction.

Children's book authors have character based websites and promotions. Children
tend to ask for books based on topics and characters. "I want to read
dinosaurs" or "I want to read Angelina Ballerina" have both been
uttered by any number of children around the world.

Our personal opinion is there are loads of wonderful How To books for
nonfiction authors to build their author platform, especially if it is a How To
or Specific Topic platform. Writer's Digest Books and Magazines are chock full
of decades of advice for authors to become known as being an authority on their
topic. However: Memoirs are 100% the professional nonfiction writer in a
specific and genuine Author Persona With a Topic.

One of our primary messages is an author's time is a precious commodity and not to spend it foolishly by jumping on the bandwagon of the latest promotional gimmick or hot blog.Our primary objective is to educate our fellow authors so that it's easier to discern the truth from the hype without wasting your hard earned dollars. Everything about this AM101 blog and our book is focused on how to apply basic marketing principles to design and implement a PLAN that is effective to generate sales of your novel. We focus on novelists because they have unique marketing challenges not addressed until now.

Friday, August 5, 2016

Ok, ok... we know that many authors are introverted and prefer the safe and quiet spaces of your writing hovels to speaking in front of an audience. However, speaking at conferences is one of the best ways to build buzz about your books and author persona. Keep in mind: no one ever said you had to speak in front of an audience ALONE. Try participating in a panel.

There are two types of panels at conferences:

Author panels tend to be focused on specific genres or market segments. A group of authors come together to talk about what they write and their latest releases in front of an audience. Young adult (YA), erotic romance, mystery, etc. are all examples of a common trait among authors on a panel.

Subject matter expert panels can be composed of authors, industry experts, or a mix of both types of speakers. Writing steampunk, mixed martial arts fighting, FBI procedures, New Orleans traditions, getting published, are all topics that could be covered in a subject matter expert panel. It is the subject that unifies the speakers on the panel.

How do I get on an author panel?

Create a panel: Writing conferences need presenters....otherwise it's just a string of parties. Most conferences put out a call for training presentation and panel proposals about a year before the date of the event. Check out the conference websites for information on how to submit a proposal. BUT FIRST round up a group of authors or subject matter experts who are willing to attend the conference (and pay all of the associated registration / conference fees).

Make it known that you are open to being on a panel: How will people know you are interested in being part of a panel if you don't tell them? Tell your author friends, writing organizations, local clubs, social media (Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, etc.) followers, anyone who will listen that you are interested in speaking at conferences in a panel format.

Let's rewind to do a slightly deeper dive on creating a panel....

We've all been to great panel discussion sessions that have provided wonderful insights into a genre or specific topic. We've all also been to terrible panels where one person 'knew everything' and hogged the microphone postulating about how wonderful they are.

There is definitely an art to coordinating a panel. Here are some things to consider:

The personalities and professionalism of the people you approach are key. How will this person react if they disagree with another panelist? Will they be gracious and kind enough to share the stage and pass the microphone? Remember, your audience will be full of readers. You'll want to make sure that you and the panelists make a good impression and NOT spend the entire session bickering.

Three to five folks on the panel (including yourself) is plenty. Go too much beyond five people and it will be hard to get through the introductions, let alone have a conversation with the audience. Have less than three folks and it will feel more like a Johnny Carson styled interview. The more people you have on the panel, the less time each person will have to speak. Plus, the more people you have on the panel the more cross-marketing and promotions should occur.

Prepare your questions for the panel ahead of time. As the panel coordinator, you are the one who sets the tone and keeps things moving. Don't rely on the audience to provide all the questions. Prepare some questions before the day of the panel and (even better) share them with the panelists so that they can have their answers at least somewhat ready.

Ask the panelists to promote the panel!Everyone involved should be spreading the word about this awesome panel they'll be on at an equally awesome conference. Who knows, you each may find new readers through cross-pollination.

Keep things moving! There is nothing worse than a boring panel. As the panel coordinator, you also take on the role of moderator. Which means you have to be willing to keep the discussion moving. Often audience members (readers) and some panelists (there's always one) try to take a dive down the rabbit hole and do a deep dive on some random topic that only a tiny portion of the wider audience is interested in hearing. A simple "let's continue this discussion after the panel" will suffice to move on to the next question or topic.

Bring your books...or at least your latest book. Have your book standing up on the table as a silent 'buy me' beacon. A tabletop plate stand or display easel is a great way to showcase your book and its cover. Remember, many people are visual and they will remember your cover better than your name.

Handout business cards and bookmarks. Your goal is sell more books...so create a way for people to walk away with some means of finding your books after the panel.

Participating in an author or subject matter expert panel allows you to take the stage and share the spotlight. Yes, you will still need to talk and interact with your audience, but the burden of filling the presentation time won't be a solo effort.

Friday, July 1, 2016

Often at conferences we
see many examples of authors behaving badly. So in honor of our conference excursions, here are some Do's, Don'ts, and Be Sure To Go tips for attending
conferences:

Industry Focused Conferences

An industry conference
focuses on the business and craft side of the publishing industry. Only
aspiring authors, published authors, editors, agents, and other industry
professionals are permitted to attend.

DO put your best foot forward and wear professional
attire that is comfortable for long days. It is better to err on the side
of being too conservative than show up at an event in clothing that is too
casual. You also don't want the distraction of pinched toes, rolled
elastic, or scratchy fabrics. Look Good and Feel Good to present your best
professional self.

DON'T sit in a corner or huddle with only people you
already know. You are paying money to attend a conference - and publishing
professionals are investing their time to meet you and learn about your
projects. Try to break out of your shell and network with new people - how
else are you going grow your network? If you're an introvert, stand tall
beside an extrovert author friend to smile, listen and learn!

BE SURE TO GO to the bar...yeah, yeah, twist your arm.
All sorts of folks hang out in the hotel bar during conferences. Grab a
soda, or beverage of your choice, and take a stroll around the room.
Morgan typically wears steampunk jewelry - it's a great conversation
starter. Therese has chatted with many agents and editors in the smoking
areas but don't hang out there unless you are a smoker and understand the
etiquette of that social sphere.

Reader Focused Conference

At reader focused
conferences you should be fully in your author persona, but still be
professional. Many of the folks who attend industry conferences also attend the
reader events. Overall, the atmosphere is much more casual. Reader conferences
tend to have more of a party atmosphere.

DO take the time to reach out to bloggers. One author
friend made formal appointments with bloggers who specialized in her genre
before the conference. She even had little thank you gifts for them.

DON'T forget that you are still a professional. Do you
really want to be remembered as the author who got sloppy drunk and sang
"Free Bird" at the top of your lungs? No, no, triple no!

BE SURE TO GO to the lobby. If you have to get your
word count done for the day, write in the lobby. Yes, it may be hard for
you to get your words on the page, but you never know who you are going to
meet. Morgan bumped
into two key editors form St. Martin's Press while looking for coffee. And
of course, there is always the bar....but, see the DON'T note above.
:D

Overall Essentials:

DO have business cards. (See our postshere,here, andhereon business card content.)

DO have your pitch ready. And we mean both your pitch
for new projects and the answer to the question "So, what do you
write?".

DO have some books and free reads to give to readers IN
YOUR AUDIENCE.

DON'T canvas or blanket the conference with your fliers
and bookmarks...(Canvasing would be exercising the shotgun method.) Many
of these items end up in the trash. Be selective on who you give your
promotional materials to, know and find your audience. A promo piece
handed to me personally by an engaging author will get read.
The HUGE pile of promo materials in the conference bag often don't make it
to the second day of the conference before hitting the recycling bin -
this is because it is information overload. Our primary message here at
AM101 is not to spend cash on what goes in the trash!

BE SURE TO GO to a variety of events or sessions and
HAVE FUN! People will want to approach the person having fun. If you would
rather be somewhere else, save your time and money and go there.
<harsh, we know...but so true>

What do we mean when we say "work" a
conference?

There are two kinds of people who go to
conferences and conventions:

1) People who are there to ATTEND the
conference (attendees).

2) People who are there to WORK the
conference (workers).

Each of these types of conference /
convention goers is there for specific reasons. The attendee's primary
objective is to learn and be entertained. The worker's primary objective is to
network and make a sale. Both types are there to makeconnections.
It is what they choose to do with these connections that differentiates an
attendee from a worker.

How do you "work" a
conference?

1) Choose your conferences wisely

There are loads of conferences and conventions
that you can attend throughout the year. There are national, regional, and
local shows that cover all aspects of the craft of writing and publishing
industry. No matter how much buzz is associated with any given show, take the
time to do some research before you sign up. Find out who typically attends. Is
an editor from one of your target publishers going to be there? How about your
top three agents? Will your favorite author be signing books or speaking on
panels? Are there panels or classes that will help you with research or
otherwise further your career?

2) Set Goals

Now that you've selected the conference(s)
you want to attend, set some goals. The first time you go to a conference go
primarily as an attendee. Make having fun your primary goal while you discover
all the things a given show has to offer. At future shows, maybe set a goal to
talk with at least five readers and two bloggers. Or maybe your goal is to
pitch your latest manuscript to at least three of your target publishers in
attendance.

3) Leave Room for Serendipity

It is easy to 'over' schedule your time.
Running from panel to panel or meeting to meeting constantly can leave you
exhausted. Allow time for sitting, observing, and random conversation. Everyone
at the conference is a potential reader, until you know if they are or aren't
in your audience. Some of the people attending will become great contacts for
your writing career. You never know who you are going to sit next to or bump
into.

4) Be Prepared

Have your pitch for your latest book
practiced and polished. Have a quick answer ready for the question: "So,
what do you write?"Mentally prepare yourself for the social interactions
at the conference. Be in your author persona. Have your business cards and
promotional materials ready to give to business contacts and members of your
audience. If you are signing books at a book sale or fair, confirm that your
books have been ordered and find out how much table space will be available for
your book signing set up.

Attending conferences and conventions can
be both fun and rewarding. Take the time to plan and prepare to squeeze every
ounce of opportunity out of the experience.

Once I started working on the project, I quickly realized that as a chapter we were lacking professional pictures that could be used for chapter marketing and promotions. Thanks to our president, Gina Fluharty, we were able to book a professional photo shoot with Mark Montoya of Montoya Photography.

Twigs Bistro (Tigard, OR) allowed us to use their main dining area, for FREE, provided we mention them in our promotions. We also had to be in and out of there before they opened for lunch. The photo shoot presented some interesting challenges for our photographer:

there were more than ten people in the picture

we were seated in a large space

we were wearing different colors and each had different skin tones

combine #3 with a low light environment and lighting the shot became incredibly difficult

In the end, Mark Montoya overcame all of these obstacles brilliantly and produced a FABULOUS set of pictures all the participants were able to use.

During the shoot, it was easy for me to know which of the participants were familiar with a professional photo shoot and which ones were total novices. Don't get me wrong, everything went well....but things could've gone a little smoother with a few minor adjustments by the participants.

In light of this experience, here are....

Tips For Working With Professional Photographers

Be ON TIME - time is most definitely money in this instance. Plus the clock was ticking on our shoot due to the restaurant's need to open on time and finish their preparations / lunch set up. Running late only decreases the amount of time in front of the camera. More time allows for more creativity.

Show up with a CLEAN face or MORE makeup than you normally wear - makeup is a topic that should be discussed ahead of time with the photographer and / or the shoot coordinator. Some photo shoots include a make up artist and this person should dictate ahead of time what preparations you need completed before you sit in their chair. (For example, some make up artists want you to show up wearing your favorite foundation. Others say they want a clean face / blank slate.) For our session, we had to do our own make up. In this case, wear more than you would normally apply. Everyday makeup / lightly applied make up tends to wash out in pictures. And, yes, this applies to men, too. Don't look like a clown...but do add some color.

Wear clothing that fits your PERSONA - for author portraits, give some thought to how you want to represent yourself and your books! I'm wearing an orange sweater and fun jewelry in the picture below. :D

Pay attention to the photographer and FOLLOW THEIR INSTRUCTIONS - you are at photo shoot not a social hour. Again, time is money, so pay attention to what the photographer needs and asks of you. If she says jump, your response should be 'how high?' - now is not the time to be on your cellphone or cracking jokes. For our photo shoot, Mark gave us each a special little light that we tucked into our books. Some folks got a blue light, others got lights with an orange tint, and some just got a plain white light. When a dear friend gave her light to someone else without first asking the photographer, I asked her to take it back. I know she was just trying to be helpful, but that light was for her by the photographer and may have been all wrong for a different person.

Fully understand the OWNERSHIP and USE of your picture - this aspect of the photo shoot should be agreed upon before picture day. Some photographers retain ownership of the image and dictate how the picture can be used without penalty. Other photographers give you full ownership and free use. Regardless of who pays for the pictures, ownership can still reside with the creator (photographer). Make sure you have an understanding of the image ownership that is clearly stated in writing.

Pick a photographer who produces IMAGES YOU LIKE - check out their work before you book the shoot and pay your money. Make sure that their artistry aligns with your persona, images, and emotions you want to convey.

HAVE FUN! - if you have an idea for a shot, mention it - but also be fully open to the recommendations and directions from the photographer. They are the only ones that can see the image through the lens and you are paying for their skill set. Still have some fun and let your personality shine through.

Friday, May 6, 2016

Therese Says: I've been working on a strategic plan for my Therese Patrick, Author business. I only have one published novel, and this one nonfiction book, but I do have projects that are in the pre-publication stage. This means I plan to have a brand that will become familiar to readers wherever they may find me when I'm promoting future books. It's a looking into the future exercise.

This is my current business card and it has my novel cover on the reverse side, plus a space where I can autograph it. Most of you are probably cringing at the yellow font and how it disappears on the background. I didn’t realize this until the actual cards arrived as the digital version looked great. So I will be redoing my business cards someday and that’s one reason why I’m playing with branding now.

The first step is choosing the main image and a tagline that represents the flavor and genre of the stories.

Here’s the table sign I have created to hang on a table or wall where I could be meeting readers at book events. It’s the image of a lake taken from an open cockpit bi-wing airplane and has talking points: It’s a Starduster II experimental single engine aircraft, that is Pine Hollow lake in eastern Oregon, those are the Cascade mountains in the background, and I took this picture from the front seat of my husband’s airplane.

This is the same lake represented in my not-so-great business card so the continuity of my marketing collateral is still consistent.

This image works for me because all of my current stories are set near a large body of water like the Columbia River and though this is an inland lake it can represent a large river or coastal bay. The wind-in-your-hair feeling with dynamic scenery will be present in every book as well whether in aircraft, or on boats or motorcycles, and someday on horseback.

My current tagline is Romantic Adventures to Cherish, “contemporary romance novelist” is inferred and the image works for the second word. So why did I pick “to cherish” as the final flavor of the type of stories I present? Because they are light family saga type stories, fast and fun reads that have a feel-good flavor. My intent is that a reader cherish the story and set it on their Keeper Shelf to reread. I’m happy to say that many readers have told me they enjoyed it and are waiting to see stories of some other characters I introduced.

Okay, now I have my primary image so I put it on my blog, which is still my primary website. With only one novel to promote today it's acceptable to retain my online presence as I've been blogging since 2009 and it is engaging to readers.

I’m currently only posting about once a month and you can see the site title is the same as my business cards. This WordPress theme is no longer supported but they can give me a CSS code to change the title to red when I am ready. Long time readers of this blog will probably notice it is different but not be sure what has changed. It has been updated and enhanced, not revamped.

I don’t have any plans to change my Facebook cover photo or profile at this time because the flavor does match my primary image of water adventures though kayaks are less wind-in-your hair than an open cockpit airplane. Our Jack Russell terrier is in the kayak cockpit with me on Jackson Lake and those are the Grand Tetons.

My Google+ profile is similar

Did you notice that I am pretty solid with blue? As in the blue half of the AM101 color scheme on this site?

Now we come to the primary reason why I'm strategically planning for a future brand. There are a lot of circular links to my original website and a memoir I wrote that is almost ready for prime time publication.

It is a family story and does have a similar “to cherish” and fun flavor. There is one vignette that does include boating on a lake and there are other adventures so, for now, I made that very basic site align with my other profiles.

The red color has replaced the yellow because when I was designing my table sign I wanted the four elements of earth, air, fire, and water represented. Also, the red roses on the wheelchair wheel is a graphic created by a friend to represent my parents romance and paintings by my mother.

Once I felt my table sign was good, I printed out a copy and showed it to people for their input and approvals. Then I went to a print shop and had it enlarged to 11x17 size. The clarity was good but maybe not for any larger, so I had it laminated and ready for more public events.

Tuesday, March 22, 2016

Morgan Says: As Therese mentioned in last month's post, I've been pretty darn busy with promotions, lately. I am officially the VP of Communications for Rose City Romance Writers (RCRW), the Portland chapter of Romance Writers of America. I take this role very seriously. As you all should know by now, I LOVE marketing and at it's most basic level marketing is communications and communications is promotions.

In February 2016, RCRW conducted an event named wRomance: a weekend of writing and love. wRomance included two half-day learning sessions Saturday, a cocktail hour reader event Saturday evening, and a Sunday afternoon showing on the documentary'Love Between the Covers.' Sounds simple, right?

Wrong.

Here's what made this event a touch more complicated to promote:

It took place in February: which meant that early promotion of the event ran into fall holiday communications. It was hard to get attention for the event in the midst of our audience's holiday preparations. Plus, if we waited too late, then our messaging would be lost among the Valentine's Day promotions.

We had to court TWO different audiences: The morning Saturday event was Geoff Symon's 'Forensics for Fiction' class followed by an afternoon session ofDamon Suede's 'Half-Day Brand Plan.' Both sessions targeted author / writer attendees. Where as the evening cocktail hour and Sunday movie showing targeted readers / general public. Yes, there was some overlap between the two audiences (writers are readers / general public), BUT there was still a need for two versions of audience specific messaging. {Basically, I had two campaigns to run instead of just one.}

Here's what I learned:

Start planning your promotions EARLY - this event was in February 2016, but we started planning it in late September 2015. The team at 'Love Between the Covers' made my promo life super easy by having a superb media and promotional kit chock full of high resolution images, author quotes, a press releases template, and sample email template. They even sent us post cards with room for personalized event stickers and movie posters for the venue theater. With help from my VP of Programs, we created similar promotional materials (fliers) for the writing day and combined event. Along the way, we realized that we needed some professional photography work for the articles. Planning so far ahead gave us plenty of time to plan a photo shoot. The pictures produced are now the headers for our RCRW's Facebook and Twitter pages. Starting early also allowed us to plan and tweak event specific webpages for the RCRW website.

Quote Block provided by the 'Love Between the Covers' media kit.

Professional #RespectRomance Photo Shoot

PICTURES garner more clicks than just words on social media - Speaking of pictures, combining pictures with a link garnered wwwaaaaayyyyy more clicks, likes, shares, and reTweets than text alone. I did my own version of A/B testing by posting the same text with and without a picture on both Twitter & Facebook. On both social media outlets, the post with the pictures had more interactions and thus helped us to more easily spread the word about our events.

The MAGIC of 'Please Share' - Notice in the picture above the post starts with 'Please Share.' And guess what - people shared!! The posts that included those two simple words were shared far more than the ones that didn't explicitly ask to be reTweeted or shared.

If your audience is on Facebook, creating a FACEBOOK EVENT will work wonders - I created a Facebook Event on both the RCRW Facebook page and my personal Facebook page. Through the event, I invited local friends to the movie showing. As you can see in the image below, by allowing friends to share this event, 290 people were invited. Notice that only 29 people responded...this is normal if not high - a 10% response rate is great. Trust me when I say that more than 29 people came to the event. Many were on this invite and simply didn't respond. Again, normal behavior - which just goes to show you that you can't always trust RSVP counts!

Facebook Event Stats from my personal page invite.

Don't be afraid to ASK FOR HELP! - Prior to this event, I'd never worked with Press Releases. My buddy, Anne Tenino - VP of Programs, had worked with press releases in her past life as an event coordinator. It was great to have her take the lead on this part of the project and I learned a ton from her along the way! Don't be afraid to ask your friends, family, and readers to help you with event promotions. In fact, getting help is a GREAT way to help spread the word about your event and build buzz. I was incredibly happy to be part of an event committee for this project. We worked as a team on all aspects of this event. The team allowed me to focus on promotions while others worked on the venue, website, and day-of coordination.

Was the event a success?

Yes, it was a resounding success! But let me back up for a minute...during the planning phase, we discussed how we were going to measure success. Initially our thought was to measure only ticket sales for each event.Yes, sales is one way of measuring success...however, we learned that there were several other areas that made this event a resounding success:

We increased visibility for our local chapter, RWA, and the romance industry via our community outreach activities and online media articles / placements - which lead to new members.

We solidified relationships with our favorite local bookseller and review site owner - which lead to increased good will with both parties.

We had FUN! Let's just say that when you mix romance authors with readers, a well stocked no-host bar, and a life-sized cardboard cutout of Fabio, all manner of shenanigans ensue! - which strengthened the friendships among chapter members and all the new friends that we made along the way.

Me folding up Fabio for safe storage.

Know you audience and start planning early for your events to be successful.

Friday, February 5, 2016

We have a list of topics to share this year but didn't start in January because Morgan has been spearheading a tight publicity campaign for an event on February 20th, sponsored by our local RWA chapter. If you are a writer and local to the Portland, Oregon area, this is an event to consider attending.

The workshops are presented by Geoff Symon (FBI Forensics Investigator) and Damon Suede (Multi-Published Author & Marketing Guru), including an evening Cocktail Reception with them and numerous local authors. There will be gifts and prizes and books and snacks and fun! For more information visit:

A screening of "Love Between the Covers" is scheduled for the next day, Sunday February 21st in Hillsboro, OR. The first 100 attendees will receive goody bags and free books!

Morgan has discovered all types of tips and tricks regarding publicity campaigns, which is really at the 501 level for Author Marketing, and why publicists are different from marketers. However, she wants to share what she's learned with our readers but needs to wait until she'd finished doing the work! So watch for that post.

At the other end of the Author Marketing spectrum, Therese (me!) has been working on getting my debut novel discovered by romance readers. I was an author sponsor for the Winter Wonderland Contest at Night Owl Reviews. During the six weeks of the contest almost twenty thousand dedicated readers saw my book cover and read the blurb for Checkmate First Mate. This translated into a boost in my sales numbers at Amazon. I also did two local book signings and completed the process to be accepted into the RWA PAN Organization. This means I and my novel were listed in the February issue of the Romance Writers Report.

As we've stated before, marketing and promotions are separate activities and sometimes there is a flurry of work that happens all at once - and we've been in the flurry. This wRomance: a weekend of writing and love will be my first big event as a published author with books and prizes for my readers and I am thrilled!!!

Publicity and promotions are a different venue that have a greater chance for success when they incorporate the marketing at the 101 level prior to jumping into the 501 shark tank.